Learn Polish for Free

The number of Polish language speakers is increasing every year with over 45 million native speakers around the world as of 2012. Polish is the national language of Poland and is spoken by residents in nearby countries such as the Czech Republic, Romania and Ukraine. Polish is also spoken by Polish emigrants around the world. Polish is a relatively easy language to learn. There are no difficult-to-learn tones or letter sounds and the grammar is fairly simple to understand. This article will provide information on how to learn Polish for free and provide information as to where to find free Polish lessons.

Methods to learn Polish for free

There are many different ways to learn Polish for free. Each method has its own pros and cons as well as its own rate of progress. The decision as to which method is best needs to be made by each individual – what works for one may not work for another.

Smartphone and tablet apps are one way to learn Polish for free with many apps offering a number of free Polish lessons upon installation. Often these lessons are bite-sized and teach a small amount of the Polish language. However, they often lack a cohesive learning structure and learning plan and give very little indication of progress or feedback.

A number of websites also provide free Polish lessons to visitors. These lessons can vary in length with little to no long-term progression. Unfortunately, these free websites normally have poor quality lessons since there is little monetary value for the website’s author.

Social networks offer the ability to contact speakers of another language with which one can try to converse. This is a difficult and time consuming method for learning Polish for free since there are no set lesson plans and communication can be difficult with a native speaker who doesn’t share a language.

Another method for learning Polish for free involves finding a tandem partner for a language exchange. They will want to learn a language from you (most likely English) and you will want to learn Polish from them. While this method allows for a lot of hands-on experience with the Polish language, learning will be unstructured and the tandem partner may not be a good teacher, which may slow down language acquisition.

Language learning platforms that charge a modest fee have a number of advantages over methods for learning Polish for free.

Firstly, the quality of the lessons is often higher since the author is earning a living from creating the platform. Their livelihood depends on them creating a good product which ensures that the quality of the learning platform is high. These courses are often well structured, too, ensuring that the language is learned in the most efficient way possible.

Secondly, paid services are able to embrace new technologies to speed up the language learning process. Smartphone apps can be created, multimedia video technology can be used and other technologies such as microphone recognition can be used to check pronunciation and monitor progress.

Finally, paid services offer other services and support that methods for learning Polish for free are unable to match. Forums, tutors and support staff are able to provide help if needed.

Learn Polish with Babbel

Babbel, a new online learning platform, offers a cost effective way to learn how to speak Polish. Although it is not free, Babbel is very reasonably priced and the interface is free of advertisements. Babbel can also be accessed through the internet and through free smartphone apps, meaning that language learning can be done anywhere. Babbel uses structured lesson plans in combination with technology to monitor progress while a special speech recognition tool monitors pronunciation to make sure that words are being said correctly. Babbel also organises lessons according to progress to optimise learning. While Babbel may have a cost attached, Babbel makes it much easier and quicker to learn a language than free alternatives. Babbel offers the first lessons for all their language courses for free, so check it out and then decide whether to subscribe or not.